The Wall Street Journal - 16.03.2020

A4| Monday, March 16, 2020 PWLC101112HTGKRFAM123456789OIXX ** THE WALL STREET JOURNAL.

U.S. NEWS

to shut this president up right

now because he is undermining

the doctors and the scientists

who are trying to help the Amer-

ican people,” Mr. Sanders said.

The debate, held by CNN and

Univision, came at a moment un-

like any in recent memory.

States are postponing primaries,

governors are banning mass

gatherings and schools are clos-

ing. Health officials warn that

things will only get worse before

they get better.

The novel coronavirus trans-

formed Sunday’s debate and,

for the foreseeable future, cam-

paigning itself. The forum was

moved to Washington from Ar-

izona, held without an audi-

ence, and the two candidates’

podiums were farther apart

than usual. The two candidates

also refrained from the tradi-

tional handshake, bumping el-

bows instead.

Mr. Biden and Mr. Sanders,

both of whom are in their late

70s, said they had altered their

lifestyles in an effort to stay

healthy. Both have stopped

holding rallies and public

events, and their staff are

working from home.

The evening was the first

time only two candidates ap-

peared on stage in the Demo-

cratic nomination contest. Past

debates, crowded with candi-

dates and before large audi-

ences, had at times broken down

into fights over zingers and

sound bites. But Sunday’s debate

resembled more of a long con-

versation, with two old rivals

working through deep-seated

disagreements—such as posi-

tions on Iraq war and same-sex

marriage.

Both candidates said they

would support and campaign for

Mr. Biden said. He called for ex-
panding drive-through testing,
for the military to be used to set
up emergency hospitals and for
government help to make sure
people who lose their jobs are
able to pay their mortgages and
small business loans.
Mr. Biden said all health-care
costs of people who contracted
the virus would be covered un-
der his plan, which Mr. Sanders
also supported. But he said the
country doesn’t need to go as far
as adopting Mr. Sanders’ signa-
ture Medicare for All system.
Mr. Sanders, who faces an up-
hill battle for the nomination af-
ter a series of losses, said the vi-
rus revealed the dysfunctionality
of the current health-care sys-
tem and was evidence that the
system should be remade en-
tirely. Mr. Sanders also attacked
the president’s response to the
pandemic.
“First thing we’ve got to do,
whether or not I am president, is

Continued from Page One

grown in the past month.

Some 74% feel enthusiastic

about or comfortable with

him, up from 56% in February.

The share enthusiastic about

or comfortable with Mr. Sand-

ers has been stable, at about

66%.

Groups that have swung

most dramatically behind Mr.

Biden in the last month in-

clude African-Americans,

among whom he leads by 77%

to 18%, as well as liberals and

voters who say they are

“strongly’’ aligned with the

Democratic Party. Mr. Biden

leads by nearly three-to-one

among that group.

Looking to the general elec-

tion, Mr. Biden led President

Trump in the new survey by 9

percentage points, 52% to 43%,

in a test match-up, while Mr.

Sanders led by 4 points, 49%

to 45%. Both margins were es-

sentially unchanged from Feb-

ruary.

The Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll was based on nationwide telephone inter-

views of 900 registered voters. It was conducted from March 11-13, 2020, by the poll-

ing organizations of Bill McInturff of Public Opinion Strategies and Jeff Horwitt of

Hart Research Associates.

The sample was drawn in the following manner: Individuals were randomly selected

from national lists of registered voters and were chosen by a systematic procedure

to provide a balance of respondents by sex. Respondents reached on their cellphone

were randomly selected from national lists of cellphone numbers.

Of the 900 interviews in the weighted data, 495 respondents were reached on a

cellphone and screened to ensure that their cellphone was the only phone they had.

In addition, 13 respondents were reached on a cellphone but reported also having a

landline.

The margin of error for the full sample is plus or minus 3.27 percentage points.

Additional interviews were conducted on some questions from a random national sam-

ple of Democratic primary voters. For the sample of 438 Democratic primary voters,

the margin of error is plus or minus 4.68 percentage points.

Americans are concerned
but not panicked about the
coronavirus pandemic, though
a majority thinks the worst is
yet to come and many say the
crisis has changed their day-
to-day lives, a new Wall Street
Journal/NBC News poll finds.
Nearly half in the survey
say they have stopped going to
large gatherings, while more
than one-third report cancel-
ing or rescheduling travel
plans, and one-quarter say
they have stopped eating at

BYJOHNMCCORMICK

restaurants. Nearly three-quar-

ters describe changes to their

lives as small or nonexistent.

A majority, some 53%, say

they are very or somewhat

worried about someone in

their family becoming sick,

while 47% express less or no

concern. Overall, 6 in 10 say

they expect the worst lies

ahead.

Views of an outbreak that

has triggered school closures,

travel limitations and stress on

the global economy vary sig-

nificantly by political party, as

well as age and location. Dem-

ocrats, older people and resi-

dents of the nation’s largest

metropolitan areas report

more current and expected dis-

ruption.

Almost 9 in 10 said they

have read or heard a lot about

the virus, making it the most

closely followed major event

recorded by the poll in nearly

a decade.

The survey of 900 regis-

tered voters found little sign

that a crisis with potential to

define the 2020 election has

altered the political standing

of President Trump. Some 51%

disapprove of how he is han-

dling the virus outbreak, while

45% approve. That is nearly

identical to his overall job-ap-

proval rating, which is essen-

tially unchanged from last

month and from much of his

tenure as president.

Republicans and Democrats

hold nearly inverse views on

his emergency response, with

81% of GOP voters saying he

has done well and 84% of Dem-

ocrats saying the opposite.

Among independents, 43% ap-

prove and 52% disapprove.

“Americans are evaluating

coronavirus through a political

lens,” said Democratic pollster

Jeff Horwitt, who conducted

the survey with Republican

Bill McInturff. “Simply put, it

is very clear that partisanship

has infected our views of the

coronavirus.”

Fewer people in the survey

said they had confidence in Mr.

Trump to handle the crisis than

they did in various levels of

government. Less than

half—48%—said they had a fair

amount or great deal of confi-

dence in the president. By com-

parison, 62% had confidence in

the federal government, 72% in

local government and 75% in

their state government.

Democrats, Republicans and

independents are fairly even in

their confidence in local and

state government, but they

part ways when it comes to

the federal government. More

than 8 in 10 Republicans have

a fair amount or great deal of

confidence in federal officials

to handle the crisis, while just

48% of Democrats and 51% of

independents do.

“Currently, coronavirus

seems remote and not scary,”

said Peter Hart, a Democratic

pollster who worked on the sur-

vey. “People mentioned this as

almost a timeout or detour, not

as a true health scare like polio

or AIDS, where it was seen as

potentially life-altering.”

Just over half are very or

somewhat worried that they

or someone in their family

might catch the virus, while

31% aren’t very worried and

16% aren’t worried at all.

Women are twice as likely as

men to be very worried.

The share of voters who say

the economy is in fair or poor

shape is larger than those who

say it is in good or excellent

shape, 52% to 47%. That is a

first since last September,

when compared with polling by

CNBC.

The share who say the

economy is in poor shape is at

its highest level since the

month before Mr. Trump took

office. It stands at 22%, up

from 14% in December 2019.

Almost a third of registered

voters say they expect the

economy to get worse in the

next year. That is the highest

level of pessimism recorded by

the poll since December 2018.

In Poll, Most Say Worst Is Yet to Come

In poll, half say they

have stopped going to

big gatherings, a

quarter shun eateries

the past month, from 37% to

80%, giving Mr. Sanders little

room for growth beyond his

current base.

Moreover, the coronavirus

pandemic, which has altered

many aspects of the campaign,

is making it harder for Mr.

Sanders to break through with

his message. It has also elimi-

nated the large rallies that

provide much of the fuel for

his campaign.

“Bernie Sanders is on a ce-

ment trampoline—not a lot of

bounce,” said Democratic poll-

ster Peter Hart, who worked

on the survey with Jeff Hor-

witt, also a Democrat, and Re-

publican Bill McInturff.

“The race is sort of locked

into place,” said Mr. McInturff.

“This is very clear, definitive

data about the status of this

race and the things Bernie

Sanders was unable to do to

create a coalition.”

A televised debate set for

Sunday night between the two

Democratic candidates will

compete for attention with

news of the pandemic, which

is producing dramatic head-

lines almost by the hour. Rep.

Tulsi Gabbard (D., Hawaii),

who drew 4% support in the

poll, didn’t meet Democratic

National Committee criteria to

qualify for the debate.

The race doesn’t look more

different among the half of

Democrats who have yet to

vote than among those who al-

ready have cast ballots. Mr. Bi-

den leads by 63% to 30%

among primary voters in

states that have already held

primaries or caucuses and by

60% to 34% in the states that

haven’t voted.

“There is no indication that

this gets easier for Bernie

Sanders in the remaining half

of the vote,’’ Mr. McInturff

said.

The level of enthusiasm

among Democratic primary

voters for Mr. Biden has also

Democratic presidential pri-
mary voters now overwhelm-
ingly back Joe Biden over Ber-
nie Sanders, a dramatic
reversal in their standings of
just one month ago, the latest
Wall Street Journal/NBC News
poll shows.
Among those who have al-
ready voted or plan to do so,
61% support the former vice
president, while 32% would
prefer the Vermont senator as
their party’s nominee.
The standings are a major
change from mid-February,
when the survey showed Mr.
Sanders backed by 27% of
Democratic primary voters and
Mr. Biden favored by just 15%.
At the time, Mr. Sanders
stood alone as the party’s
front-runner, while Mr. Biden
was among four candidates es-
sentially tied for second place.
But Mr. Biden’s fortunes
changed significantly following
his win in South Carolina’s
Feb. 29 primary and domi-
nance in a string of field-nar-
rowing primaries since then.
The share of Democratic
primary voters who say they
have definitely settled on a
candidate has skyrocketed in

BYJOHNMCCORMICK

Front-Runner

Takes Wide Lead

In Primary Race

Preference for Democratic
nominee

Source: Wall Street Journal/NBC News
telephone poll of 438 Democratic primary
voters, conducted March 11-13, 2020; margin of
error +/- 4.7 pct. pts.

Note: Combines shares who say they will
definitely or probably vote for candidate, as
well as who "lean toward'' a candidate.

% 2  6

Biden

Sanders

Gabbard

March10-13 Feb.14-

Big Teachers Union

Makes Endorsement

Joe Biden won the support

of the National Education Asso-

ciation, the nation’s largest la-

bor union, in the latest example

of political groups coalescing

around his presidential bid.

The union’s political-action

committee council and its board

of directors voted Saturday to

recommend the former vice

president to its three million

members in the Democratic pri-

maries, giving Mr. Biden the

support of a large group of reli-

able voters.

Lily Eskelsen Garcia, the

union’s president, called Mr. Bi-

den a “tireless advocate for

public education” who would

champion strong neighborhood

schools and boost teacher pay.

Mr. Biden has built a lead

over Vermont Sen. Bernie Sand-

ers of more than 150 delegates

through a series of victories in

primaries this month, helped by

the endorsement of several of

his former presidential rivals.

Mr. Biden’s campaign is aiming

to score decisive wins over Mr.

Sanders in Tuesday’s primaries

in Arizona, Florida, Illinois and

Ohio as campaigns grapple with

the uncertainty created by the

coronavirus pandemic.

The teachers union noted

that Mr. Biden attended all

three of its presidential forums

in Iowa, Pennsylvania and Texas

and sat for a video interview as

part of the process. His wife,

Jill Biden, is an educator of

more than three decades and

an NEA member.

Mr. Biden has proposed

boosting teacher pay and tri-

pling funding for Title I, the fed-

eral program that provides

funding for schools that have a

high percentage of students

from low-income families. The

former vice president has also

spoken on the campaign trail of

the need to increase the num-

ber of school psychologists and

counselors for students, and

helping teachers pay off their

student loans.

The union, which is 76%

women, has often pointed to its

role as dependable voters. It

has estimated a turnout rate of

its members exceeding 90% in

battleground states.

Mr. Biden has received en-

dorsements from the Interna-

tional Brotherhood of Electrical

Workers and the International

Association of Fire Fighters,

among other unions.

—Ken Thomas

Lally Doerrer watching Joe Biden during his Illinois virtual town hall on Friday from her living room in Chicago.

CHARLES REX ARBOGAST/ASSOCIATED PRESS

one another if they were to lose

the nomination, saying Mr.

Trump needed to be removed

from office.

However, after an extended

back-and-forth over previous

votes, Mr. Biden acknowledged

there could be some growing

pains in bringing the party to-

gether.

“He’s making it hard for me

right now. I was trying to give

him credit for some things and

he won’t even take the credit,”

Mr. Biden said as Mr. Sanders

laughed and smiled.

“If Bernie is the nominee, I

will not only support him, I will

campaign for him....I would hope

that Bernie would do the same

thing if I’m the nominee and en-

courage all of his followers to, in

fact, support me as well,” Mr. Bi-

den said.

The pair fell into familiar pol-

icy disputes, after the Vermont

senator previewed that he would

press Mr. Biden on a series of

liberal priorities.

When Mr. Sanders was asked

what actions he would take to

improve the economy coming

out of the coronavirus crisis, he

said the crisis further revealed

the income inequality in the

country, falling into his stump

speech. “People are looking for

results, not a revolution,” Mr. Bi-

den responded.

Another rift between the two

candidates was exposed by a

question about whether indus-

tries affected by coronavirus

should be bailed out by the gov-

ernment, recalling Mr. Biden’s

vote in favor of and Mr. Sand-

ers’s vote against the move to

bail out banks amid the 2008 fi-

nancial crisis.

“We need to stabilize the

economy, but we can’t repeat

what we did in 2008,” Mr. Sand-

ers said.

“Had those banks gone under,

all those people Bernie says he

cares about would be in deep

trouble,” Mr. Biden said. “This

was about saving an economy.

And it did save the economy.”

The pair also haggled over

past comments on Social Secu-

rity. Mr. Sanders criticized Mr.

Biden for a 1995 speech in which

he called for a freeze in govern-

ment spending, including Social

Security.

Mr. Biden said the video clip

pushed by Mr. Sanders’s cam-

paign didn’t include the full con-

text and that he never pushed

for cuts to the program.

Both men entered the debate

looking for strong performances.

Mr. Biden, who leads in the dele-

gate count, was looking for a

springboard into Arizona, Flor-

ida, Illinois and Ohio, the states

that vote next.

Former Vice President Joe Biden and Sen. Bernie Sanders clashed on the coronavirus, with Mr. Sanders

calling for a total overhaul of the health-care system and Mr. Biden seeking more measured steps,

MANDEL NGAN/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE/GETTY IMAGES

Biden and

Sanders

Square Off